Solar energy harvesting for autonomous field devices

Abstract

The energy required to power an autonomous field device can be drawn from its environment by means of energy harvesting. Outdoors, one abundant and ubiquitous source of energy is solar irradiation, which can be reliably converted into electricity by solar cells. In principle, this is also true indoors if artificial light sources produce sufficient optical irradiation. Different solar cell materials can play off their individual strengths in these different use cases. Since ambient optical irradiation usually is an intermittent phenomenon, a solar powered field device has to include an energy storage solution for bridging gaps that occur in energy harvesting. In this study, different solar cell materials and energy storage solutions are discussed and evaluated quantitatively according to data sheet information. According to calculations for an assumed continuous power consumption of an autonomous field device of 1 mW for a period of 10 years, a solar panel of 4 × 4 cm² in the outdoor case and 20 × 20 cm² in the indoor case can deliver the required energy. Along with an energy storage system consisting of a 100 F supercapacitor and a primary backup cell, solar energy harvesting for autonomous field devices seems technically feasible.

Towards a Green and Self-Powered Internet of Things Using Piezoelectric Energy Harvesting

“…Wireless solutions and energy harvesting techniques provide a wide range of solutions for the sensors to become maintenance free. Some examples are the use of piezoelectric energy harvesters for vibration monitoring [82], solar energy harvesting for autonomous field sensors [83], and recently proposed multi-source energy harvester strategies for wireless sensor networks [84]. Fig.…”

Comparative analysis of MPPT techniques for PV in domestic applications

“…The emissions from the production of components are the only emissions related with PV power generation. After their installation they generate electricity from the solar irradiation without emitting greenhouse gases [10][11][12]. Also, they can be installed in any available places without no other usage or extra space, such as mountains and deserts for large scale installation and roof tops and side walls as far as domestic installation is under consideration, thus they can produce electricity, even for remote locations, without an electricity network [13,14].…”

Low‐voltage commercial super‐capacitor response to periodic linear‐with‐time current excitation: a case study

“…Super-capacitors, also known as electric double layer capacitors, are widely used as energy storage devices for numerous applications including solar harvesting for autonomous devices [1], renewable-power systems [2][3][4][5], electric vehicles [6,7], uninterruptible power supplies [8], power regulators [9], wireless sensor nodes [10], biomedical implants [11], and other nonconventional applications [12]. These devices are available with rated capacitances ranging from milli-farads to kilo-farads, placing them between traditional capacitors and electro-chemical batteries in terms of capacity.…”